Manicotti Italian Casserole

"Some members of my family call it manicotti, some call it Italian casserole. So I call it Manicotti Italian Casserole. This is one of my all time favorite meals to make, and it's super easy! For gatherings I make the whole recipe, for my family I cut it in half."

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).

Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to boil. Pour in rigatoni, and cook until al dente, about 8 to 10 minutes. Drain, and set pasta aside.

Meanwhile, brown ground beef and italian sausage in a large skillet over medium heat. With a slotted spoon, remove beef and sausage to a baking dish. Stir mushrooms, spaghetti sauce, and cooked pasta into the baking dish. Sprinkle cheese and pepperoni over the top.

Bake in preheated oven until the cheese is brown and bubbly, about 20 minutes.

Most Helpful Positive Review

Sep 11, 2007

I've made this dish twice now. Each time it was completely gone, no leftovers! It feeds about 8-10 people easily. I took someone's advise and mixed 1/2 the cheese into the casserole then sprinkled the rest on top. I layered the pepperoni under the cheese so they wouldn't get crispy. One time I used the slice pepperoni and cut them into quarters. The second time I cubed the pepperoni. Both tasted excellent!

Most Helpful Critical Review

Jul 27, 2009

Yes this is delicious, but it does not resemble Manicotti. Manicotti are long tubular shells stuffed with ricotta cheese,egg,parmesan cheese,and parsley. When I have leftover pasta and tomatoe sauce, I mix in extras like olives and sausage, and top with mozzarella cheese, and bake it to reheat. It does not make Manocotti.

My family loved this recipe. I did make a few small changes...after browning the ground beef and italian sausage and cooking the pasta, I put them, along with two jars of Bartoli Tomato & Basil spaghetti sauce, the mozzarella cheese and some parmesan cheese together in one large bowl and mixed them, before putting into 9 X 13 pan. I also reserved about 1 1/2 cups of mozzarella to sprinkle over the top, along with some more parmesan. I did not use the pepperoni because I felt there was plenty of meat and flavors already. Very easy and very tasty!!!

This is absolutely delicious! And easy! I halved the recipe and it was still a lot. I thought that it was a lot of meat in the recipe, but I tried it anyway. Glad I did. It wouldn't have come out as good as it did. I did add a couple of things though.
1. garlic powder. season salt, and sauteed onions while browning meat.
2. mixed some cheese in with the meat mix.
3. and sprinkled some parmesan cheese on the top with the pepperonis.
Great dish. thanks Erin love!

This was awesome! I will make a few changes next time though: I used two of the 1lb 10 oz jars of spaghetti sauce. It wasn't quite 64 oz like the recipe calls for but it was enough! I used the traditional kind and ricotta cheese kind. Next time I think I will use the chunky garden vegetables kind, or chop up some green peppers to put in there as well. Also, I will mix cheese with in the pasta mix as well instead of just on top. And for the meat, I will use just a half pound of hamburger and 1 1/2 pounds of the italian sausage to add a little more spicey-ness to it! Lastly I used fresh mushrooms instead of canned and sauteed them about 5 minutes before I put them in the mixThe auther says she halves it for her family and makes the whole recipe for family gatherings; She's right on! I was making this for just my fiance' and I and I decided to make the whole thing because we wanted leftovers since we don't cook a whole lot...we only ate maybe an 1/8th of it and we were FULL! Next time I will definatly halve the recipe and there will be enough still for a day or two for left overs. GREAT recipe! I will make again, it's a keeper!

Great basic recipe. I added chopped green and red pepper to cook with the ground beef, along with chopped onion. I also added in sliced black olives (you could also try green). This recipe made enough for 2 9X13 pans. We enjoyed one and have one in the freezer.

*Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet. Your daily values may be higher or lower depending on your calorie needs.

**Nutrient information is not available for all ingredients. Amount is based on available nutrient data.

(-)Information is not currently available for this nutrient. If you are following a medically restrictive diet, please consult your doctor or registered dietitian before preparing this recipe for personal consumption.